The Archaeology of American Mining

Paul J. White

• Publisher: University Press of Florida
• Year: 2019
• Print ISBN:
  9780813068046
  9780813054551
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9780813065359
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Archaeology
• Index: Social Sciences

Mining History Association Clark C. Spence Award The mining industry in North America has a rich and conflicted history. It is associated with the opening of the frontier and the rise of the United States as an industrial power but also with social upheaval, the dispossession of indigenous lands, and extensive environmental impacts. Synthesizing fifty years of research on American mining sites that date from colonial times to the present, Paul White provides an ideal overview of the field for both students and professionals. The Archaeology of American Mining offers a multifaceted look at mining, incorporating findings from an array of subfields, including historical archaeology, industrial archaeology, and maritime archaeology. Case studies are taken from a wide range of contexts, from eastern coal mines to Alaskan gold fields, with special attention paid to the domestic and working lives of miners. Exploring what material artifacts can tell us about the lives of people who left few records, White demonstrates how archaeologists contribute to our understanding of the legacies left by miners and the mining industry. A volume in the series the American Experience in Archaeological Perspective, edited by Michael S. Nassaney

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• CONTENTS
• List of Figures
• Foreword
• Preface
• Introduction
• 1. American Mining in Three Acts
• 2. Historical Archaeologists and American Mining
• 3. Roaring Camp and Company Town
• 4. Meeting the Miners
• 5. Into the Mines
• 6. Mining In Memoriam
• Conclusion: Scaling Up and Out
• References
• Index